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November 9, 2015

What is an "advance directive" and why do I need one? An advance directive includes two major components -- an appointment of health care agent, in which you direct a person to make decisions for you if you cannot; and what is sometimes called a "living will," a legal document that
specifies your
health care wishes when you are no longer able to do so. The key is to prepare this
in advance, before you have health issues, and while you are still competent to
make these decisions.
An advance directive covers all health care issues, physical and mental.
It could cover simple things like routine health care decisions that you can no
longer make,
or more complicated issues including whether you wish to have life support,
cardio-vascular
resuscitation, tube feeding, pain medications, or surgery.

In order to make a valid advance directive, it must be signed in the presence of two witnesses, while you are
mentally competent
and can understand what you are directing. The person that you are appointing
as your
"health care agent" to make such decisions if you become
incapacitated, cannot be a witness.
In addition, at least one of the witnesses must be someone who would not financially benefit
by your death or handle your estate.It
does not have to be notarized. You should discuss your
wishes in detail with this person and be comfortable that they both understand
and agree to carry
out your wishes if needed. Often a spouse or parent fills this role but there
is no
requirement on who can serve as a health care agent. This is a personal
decision that should not
be made lightly.

You do not have to hire an attorney
to draft an advance directive, but many attorneys, including the attorneys at Taylor Legal, routinely include these documents as part of an overall estate planning package. The Office of the Maryland Attorney General has an approved advance directive form
on its website at https://www.oag.state.md.us/healthpol/adirective.pdf. However, you are not
required to use this form.

What do you do once you have an advance directive? Be sure to keep a copy

with
your permanent documents and give a copy to your health care agent and doctor. You
can

also
obtain a wallet card showing that you have an advance directive.

Suppose you do become incapacitated
and cannot make an informed medical decision,

what
happens if you have an advance directive? Before an advance directive is
used a doctor must certify in writing that you are not capable of making such a
decision. Once
these steps are completed, your advance directive should be honored.

While Maryland law does not require
that anyone have an advance directive, it
can alleviate a lot of stress and uncertainty.Thus, discussion and planning ahead with an advance directive, is advisable.

You need not worry about being
locked into your advance directive. As long as

you
still have legal capacity to understand what you are doing, you can always
change or revoke

it.
This gives people added assurances that any changing wishes or needs can be
carried out.

November 2, 2015

It is very difficult, emotionally, to think about needing a will, because it makes us think about death. Many people occasionally think about this
and plan to look into it but don't go any
further. The reason why is obvious --
it's not a fun thought and easy to say "I'll get to this
later, when I'm less busy." But for many, "later" never comes.
The result can have far reaching negative consequences. So, while difficult, thinking about a will is very important and could be the best gift you leave to your heirs or descendants.

In
order to understand this whole process, a little background information is
helpful.

First, what is a "will?" A will is a
written legal document directing a person's wishes regarding their property and other financial affairs, or nominating a guardian for minor children, after death. In order to make a valid will in Maryland,
a person must be at least 18 years old and be competent. A will must be in writing and signed by
two or more credible witnesses. A will can do many helpful things including:

1.
Appointing a "Personal Representative," the person you select to
administer the closing

of
your estate, pay your bills, and
carry out your wishes.

2.
Appointing a "Guardian," who
will have legal custody of your minor child or child

with a disability.

3.
Dispose of your personal and real property as you direct.

4. Make charitable bequests.

5.
Set up a trust or special needs trust (for persons with a disability).

5.
Safeguard your finances through proper tax planning.

6.
Avoid family disputes by clearly setting forth your intentions.

7.
Explain, if you chose to, why you are doing certain things in your will.

In failing to make a will, you lose the opportunity to control all of the above important

matters after your death.

If you already have a will, but need to make a minor change, a change after a will is made to part of
the will is called a "codicil" (like an amendment). A properly drawn codicil will keep a will intact
with a change only to the part specified in the codicil. This enables a person to make a
change without the time and expense of drawing up a whole new will. If you have major changes to an existing will, it is best to have an entirely new will prepared. Most wills should have a provision that any prior will is "revoked" by a more recent will.

If you do not have a will, or if no valid will can be located, each state, including Maryland, by
statute, sets forth what happens if you die without a will. Thus, you are leaving important decisions up to the State, rather than taking control of your own affairs.

First, because an
"estate" handled by someone, State law will determine who should serve as the Personal Representative of your estate.
The Personal Representative is the person who must identify the decedent's assets and file required forms and tax
returns, pay estate taxes and other expenses, pay bills and funeral expenses, and then distribute
any remaining assets pursuant to Maryland law. State law cannot determine if a certain person is ready, willing or able to handle this work and the job may to to a person not suited to the task at hand.

Second, State law will direct how your assets are distributed under the rules of "intestate
succession" (without a will). There are many possible scenarios. These include a decedent who:

1.
is married or unmarried;

2. has surviving children or grandchildren;

3. has siblings or parents; and/or

4.
has grandparents or more distant lineal relatives.

The rules of intestate succession set up a complicated division of assets based on the surviving family and relationship with the decedent. An
overall scheme of this is set forth by the Office of the Register of Wills (http://registers.maryland.gov/main/publications/wills.html). An example of some or the rules of intestate succession are

If a
spouse and minor child/children survive, the spouse receives only one-half of
the probate assets and the child/children receive the other one-half.

If there
are no surviving minor children but other surviving children or parents, the spouse
receives the first $15,000.00 plus one-half of the balance of the estate; the remainder
passes to the decedent's children, if any, otherwise to his or her parents.

If a
spouse but no children or parents survive, the spouse receives the entire
probate estate.

If
children but no spouse survive, the children will receive everything.

If no
relatives (brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, cousins, etc.) survive, the
assets will be distributed to the Board of Education in the jurisdiction where
the estate was administered.

The
rules that apply to intestate succession are complicated and the above is a
simplified

version. The actual statutes must be
consulted in estate planning and checked regularly for any

changes or new requirements. This
article does not attempt to cover every scenario or guarantee

what will happen if you die without a
will. In addition to the Maryland Office of the Register of

Wills website, another helpful website
for general information is Maryland Orphans Court,

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